To coincide with this year’s Childnet Academy week in Jamaica Childnet is running a major international conference on the theme of “Children and the Internet: Releasing Potential, Minimising Risk”
See www.childnetacademy.org/event for full details of the conference and www.childnetacademy.org/winners to vote for this year’s favourite winning websites.
A special one-day conference to review the impact that the Internet is having on children and young people will be held in Jamaica on 31 March 2005, it was announced today (17 March 2005).
The conference, run by Cable & Wireless and children’s Internet charity, Childnet International will allow policy makers, educators and industry representatives to share lessons learnt around the world to ensure that young people are using the Internet positively and safely.
The conference, Releasing Potential, Minimising Risk, will highlight the creative and inspiring ways in which children and young people are using the Internet and will explore just how powerful the internet can be as a tool to enable young people to learn, communicate and realise their full potential.
The conference, run in partnership with the British Council, will also highlight the importance of staying safe online and explore how the risks of new technology can be minimised, ensuring that children and young people can be protected from inappropriate content and contact.
Contributors at the conference will include The Hon Maxine Henry-Wilson, Minister of Education, Youth & Culture, Ms Jacqueline Holding, President of Cable & Wireless, Stephen Carrick Davies, Chief Executive of Childnet International and Richard Millward, Director of learning technology research centre, ULTRALAB.
The conference will include an opportunity for teachers and educators to receive training on how to deliver Childnet International’s award-winning school based Internet safety programme, Kidsmart. An extended conference workshop session, to be attended by teachers from across Jamaica, will explore how the programme can be replicated in schools across the country.
The conference is being run in parallel with the Cable & Wireless Childnet Academy, which will take place in Montego Bay between 27-31 March. The initiative brings together the winners of an international web development competition for young people (aged 18 and under) and showcases the creativity of young people who are using the web to bring positive benefit to young people around the world.
For more information about the conference or for details about how to attend, see www.childnetacademy/event
For more information about the Cable & Wireless Childnet Academy see www.childnetacademy.org
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About Childnet International
Childnet International is a registered charity, set up in 1996 – with the mission to work in partnership with others around the world to help make the internet a great and safe place for children.
The vision of the organisation is to ensure that all those involved in developing, producing, controlling, using and regulating international telecommunications (current and future), recognise and implement policies and programmes which prioritise the rights of children so that their interests are both promoted and protected. For more information about Childnet International go to www.childnet-int.org.
About Cable & Wireless
Cable & Wireless is one of the world’s leading international communications companies. It provides voice, data and IP (Internet Protocol) services to business and residential customers, as well as services to other telecoms carriers, mobile operators and providers of content, applications and internet services.
Cable & Wireless’ principal operations are in the United Kingdom, continental Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, Panama and the Middle East.
For more information about Cable & Wireless, go to
www.cw.com
For more information about the conference or to arrange for an interview with any of the conference speakers please contact:
Stephen Carrick-Davies
Childnet International
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7639 6967
E-mail:
Cable & Wireless Jamaica
Tel: +1 876 929 2194
E-mail:
